Blood Misuse : "A Criminal Cover Up"

[Guest Kurt]

The world is finally waking up to the dangers of ignoring the simple Bible command to "abstain from blood" (Acts 15:20).
Major scandal hitting the front pages of the UK press today, with the shadow health secretary calling the misuse of blood in the NHS (National Health Service) a "criminal cover up".
Story below:

NHS contaminated blood was 'criminal cover-up' - Burnham

A "criminal cover-up on an industrial scale" took place over the use of NHS contaminated blood products in the 1970s and 1980s, former Health Secretary Andy Burnham has claimed.

More than 2,000 deaths have been linked to the scandal in which haemophiliacs and others were infected with hepatitis C and HIV from imported blood products.

Speaking in the Commons, the Labour MP said victims were "guinea pigs".

Health minister Nicola Blackwood resisted calls for a fresh inquiry.

She said thousands of documents had been released by the Department of Health in relation to the scandal, while two reviews had already been carried out.

In 2015, the then Prime Minster David Cameron apologised to thousands of victims of the contaminated blood scandal.

'Deliberate cover-up'

A parliamentary report had found around 7,500 patients were infected by imported blood products - contracting hepatitis C and HIV - the virus that can develop into Aids.

The UK imported supplies of the clotting agent Factor VIII - some of which turned out to be infected. Much of the plasma used to make Factor VIII came from donors like prison inmates in the US, who sold their blood.

More than 2,000 UK patients have since died as a result.

Now Mr Burnham is calling for a public "Hillsborough-style inquiry" - echoing calls already made by the Haemophilia Society and victims' families.

In what was his final speech in the Commons - having announced he will not stand in the upcoming election - the MP for Leigh outlined evidence that he claimed amounted to "deliberate, provable acts of cover-up".

He gave examples of inappropriate treatment given to patients, tests being done on people without their knowledge or consent, and results from such tests being withheld for several years.

He labelled these "criminal acts", and compared campaigning by relatives of infected people to the efforts by families of Liverpool football fans crushed to death in the Hillsborough stadium disaster in 1989.

He said both cases "resulted in appalling negligence from public bodies" and involved "an orchestrated campaign to prevent the truth from being told".

Mr Burnham told the Commons he will take his claims to the police if a new inquiry is not established before Parliament breaks for its summer recess in July.

• WATCH: The three brothers killed in a blood scandal
• Victims of contaminated NHS blood launch legal case

Speaking during the adjournment debate, Mr Burnham cited the cases of three victims.

One of those was haemophiliac Ken Bullock, infected with non-A, non-B hepatitis, who died in 1998.

His widow said that in December 1983, her husband's medical notes changed to suggest he was "a clinical alcoholic".

Mr Burnham told MPs this accusation escalated over the next 15 years, with Mr Bullock unaware of the "appalling" claims.

Mr Bullock was possibly refused a liver transplant based on his falsified medical records saying he was an alcoholic, Mr Burnham said.

Factor VIII 'warnings'

The MP later mentioned two documents, including a 1975 letter from Stanford University's medical centre warning the source blood is "100% is from skid row derelicts".

Image copyrightSPL

Last year, the UK government launched a consultation on the money available to to those affected by the scandal.

As a result, the government announced that victims in England with stage 1 Hepatitis C would receive £3,500 a year, with the provision to appeal for a higher payment close to the £15,000 received by HIV patients who received toxic blood.

It also announced it will fund payment for the bereaved partner or spouse of individuals infected with Hepatitis C and/or HIV as a result of receiving NHS-supplied blood products.

More on this story

• 'Blood contamination tore my family apart'

  11 April 2017
• Contaminated blood: Increased financial support for infected patients

  22 December 2016
• Awareness campaign to find NHS contaminated blood patients

  2 September 2016
• Penrose inquiry: David Cameron apologises over infected blood

  25 March 2015
• Victims of contaminated NHS blood launch legal case

  15 January 2015

   

  source

   

  
  Proponents of “blood management” hope that transfusions will one day be a thing of the past.

  Medicine Without Blood

   

   

   

[Guest Kurt]

Contaminated blood scandal inquiry announced.  (11 July 2017)

A UK-wide inquiry will be held into the contaminated blood scandal that left at least 2,400 people dead, the prime minister has confirmed.

A spokesman for Theresa May said it would establish the causes of the "appalling injustice" that took place in the 1970s and 1980s.

Thousands of NHS patients were given blood products from abroad that were infected with hepatitis C and HIV.

It's been called the worst treatment disaster in the history of the NHS.

Many of those affected and their families believe they were not told of the risks involved and there was a cover-up.

Speaking to the BBC, Mrs May said: "They deserve answers, and the inquiry that I have announced today will give them those answers, so they will know why this happened, how it happened.

"This was an appalling tragedy and it should never have happened."

What is the contaminated blood scandal?

A recent parliamentary report found around 7,500 patients were infected by imported blood products.

Many were patients with an inherited bleeding disorder called haemophilia.

They needed regular treatment with a clotting agent Factor VIII, which is made from donated blood.

The UK imported supplies and some turned out to be infected. Much of the plasma used to make Factor VIII came from donors like prison inmates in the US, who sold their blood.

Jason Evans was just four years old when his father Jonathan, a haemophiliac, died after being infected with HIV through contaminated Factor VIII treatment.

Jason recently discovered that in late 1984 his father had raised concerns with his doctors about Factor VIII but he says he was told "there was nothing to worry about, this is sensationalism and not to pay attention to it. And he trusted his doctor".

BBC Panorama - Contaminated Blood: The Search for the Truth

What will the inquiry do?

Families of those who died will be consulted about what form the inquiry should take.

It could be a public Hillsborough-style inquiry or a judge-led statutory inquiry, the prime minister confirmed.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said the inquiry should have the potential to trigger prosecutions.

A Scottish government spokesperson said: "We were very surprised that as the new inquiry is expected to extend to Scotland, the UK government did not seek to discuss this with us in advance of their announcement. We will be seeking clarity as a matter of some urgency.

"People in England and Wales should get the same opportunity to get answers as we have already given through the Penrose Inquiry in Scotland."

Sir Peter Bottomley, co-chairman of the cross-party parliamentary group on haemophilia and contaminated blood, said the success of the inquiry would depend on it being able to get hold of sensitive information.

"It must have powers to get documents from pharmaceutical companies and government," he said.

Why has it taken so long?

The government has been strongly criticised for dragging its heels.

Greater Manchester mayor and former health secretary Andy Burnham has repeatedly called for a Hillsborough-style probe into what happened.

Mr Burnham claimed in the Commons that a "criminal cover-up on an industrial scale" had taken place.

The Downing Street announcement came hours before the government faced possible defeat in a vote on an emergency motion about the need for an inquiry.

Will victims be financially compensated?

Payments have been made to some of the people who were infected. A fund was established to help support survivors.

If the new inquiry finds culpability it opens the door to victims seeking large compensation payouts through the courts.

Jason Evans said his father had raised concerns with his doctors about Factor VIII before he died.

Liz Carroll, chief executive of the Haemophilia Society, said: "The government has for decades denied negligence and refused to provide compensation to those affected, this inquiry will finally be able to properly consider evidence of wrongdoing."

Are blood products safe now?

Improvements in donor vetting meant that by 1986 UK patients were receiving safer treatments.

By the late 1990s, synthetic treatments for haemophilia became available, removing the infection risk.

Anyone who received a blood transfusion before 1991 is potentially at risk of Hepatitis C infection since blood donations were not screened before this date.

Blood donations are now routinely tested for infections, including hepatitis and HIV.

BBC NEWS (videos)

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Contaminated Blood - Jehovah's Laws Vindicated Again

The British Prime Minister,  Theresa May announced that a UK-wide inquiry will be held into a contaminated blood scandal that left at least 2,400 people dead during the 1970's and 1980's.

Thousands of patients were given blood products that were infected with hepatitis C and HIV and to add
insult to injury many of those affected and their families believe they were not told of the risks involved and there was a cover-up.

Speaking to the BBC, Mrs May said: "They deserve answers, and the inquiry that I have announced today will give them those answers, so they will know why this happened, how it happened".